Boxborough Planning Board recommends two zoning articles, pauses data center bylaw
Boxborough Planning Board sends two zoning articles to town meeting, holds off on data centers.
Planning Board · Meeting of August 31, 2026
Boxborough Planning Board sends two zoning articles to town meeting, holds off on data centers. The board voted 5-0 to recommend state-mandated changes to entitlements, nonconformities and variances under Chapter 40A, and voted 5-0 to recommend a correction to its MBTA Communities Act density bylaw after the state found a spreadsheet error and placed the town in "temporary compliance." A proposed moratorium on data centers, using a 5,000-kilovolt-ampere electrical-load threshold, stayed in draft form, with its expiration pushed to December 2028; the town's peak current user draws about 3,897 kilovolt-amperes. Resident Kathleen Vorce warned "noise is going to be the greatest repercussion for any local residents." The board also voted 4-1 to accept withdrawal of a stale site plan application on the town-owned 984 Massachusetts Avenue firehouse property and voted to enter executive session on litigation over 242-244 Adams Place.
In the full story:
- Who Was There
- Organizations And Documents Referenced
- The complete report — 3,444 words
Source: the Planning Board meeting of August 31, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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